CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has ordered CB-CID probe into the gang rape and murder of a Dalit minor girl in Ariyalur. The sensational gang rape and murder case, involving a local Hindu Munnani functionary, rocked the State in December, 2016.
Justice R Mahadevan gave a directive to this effect when a criminal original petition from the girl’s mother came up before him on Monday again.
The judge also stayed all proceedings pending before the Ariyalur police till April 24. Pulling up the prosecution for seeking ‘unnecessary adjournments’ in the case, the judge granted the interim relief.
According to senior advocate R Vaigai, the 16-year-old girl went missing from home on December 29, 2016. Though her mother had lodged a complaint with local police immediately, she was given only a community service register number and no FIR was registered. Six days later, an FIR was registered, but only for a ‘girl missing’ case and not for abduction even though the mother had specifically mentioned names of the persons suspected to have abducted her daughter. She had taken the matter up with higher officials right from the Sub-Inspector to the SP, but there had been no action.
The girl’s body was found floating in a well on January 14, 2017. The Jayamkondam DSP, instead of taking the blame for the 15-day delay, abused the grieving family members and said they had not brought up the girl well.
Noting that the minor girl could have been saved, had the officers taken proper initiative to secure her on December 29, 2016 itself, Vaigai claimed that even after the murder, the police did not take prompt action, till the issue was highlighted by activists and politicians. The fundamental right to life and proper probe had been trampled upon, she said and prayed the court to hand over the case to CB-CID. A woman officer not below the rank of DSP must be given the job, she added. The three police officials named by the mother should be proceeded against for their failure to prevent the crimes, she prayed.